The Valletta Cultural Agency is inviting proposals from those wishing to take on the role of Artistic Director of the Valletta Pageant of the Seas 2022. The call is open to both local and international applicants.
__**The Grand Harbour**__
The Grand Harbour, or ‘Il-Port il-Kbir’ in Valletta is a natural harbour on the Southwestern side of the island, bordered on one side by the peninsula on which the city of Valletta is built and on the other by several inlets and headlands occupied by smaller towns collectively known as the Cottonera. Along with its strategic location, the Grand Harbour is considered to be one of Malta’s foremost geographic assets. Archaeological remains show that the harbour and its hinterland was in use from the earliest periods of human habitation on the island but it gained further prominence in the 12th/13th centuries and then again in the 16th century when it became the base for the Knights of St John. The Knights, followed by the British forces who occupied the island in the 1800s, shaped the Grand Harbour into what we see today; creating a landscape dominated by the honey-coloured fortification walls of Valletta, Fort St Elmo and Fort St Angelo at its entrance and the commercial hub and dockyards in the distance.
__**The Valletta Pageant of the Seas**__
Conceived as one of the flagship projects of Valletta 2018, European Capital of Culture, the event took place in 2016 and 2018 as part of the cultural programme of Valletta as European Capital of Culture in 2018, attracting tens of thousands of people to the shores of the harbour each time. As part of the legacy of the ECoC, the event was taken up by the Valletta Cultural Agency which produced a televised edition in 2020 due to the restrictions brought about by the COVID 19 pandemic watched by more than 30,000 people. The video of the live broadcast may be seen here.
The focal point of the event is a grand performance on the water which has revolved around themes related to elements of Malta’s history and, more recently, the makers within the Valletta community. Preceding the performance, are two activities which have become mainstays of the event:
1. Tellieqa Telliqun: a wacky race of home-crafted vessels made by participants selected from an open call. The call for 2020 is available here and a short video of the race is available here.
2. Regatta: an iteration of a traditional rowing race which takes place biannually in the harbour, usually involving all the Regatta clubs active around the Grand Harbour. Unlike the previous two, the 2020 edition was specially dedicated to the women’s traditional regatta race.
Although other areas of the harbour may be used as an approach, the event must be concentrated in the area indicated in Appendix 1.
__**Duties of the Artistic Director**__
The Artistic Director (AD) will be playing a leading role in directing the event planned for the 25th June 2022. The Agency is looking for an AD who can present a contemporary theme, based on an understanding of the history, culture and local properties of Valletta. The production of the event will be carried out by the Agency’s Programming & Production team which has carried out the production of the 2020 edition.
The AD will be responsible for:
• Setting the event theme and developing the main performance
• Budgeting for the event
• Selecting artists and securing their participation
• Working with the Programming & Production team on budgeting the festival and coordinating development and implementation
• Developing and implementing relevant outreach events
• Working with the Communications & Marketing team on communicating the event
• Any other responsibilities specified in the contract
If not resident in Malta, the Artistic Director will be required to carry out several short visits to Valletta, to hold regular meetings with the Agency and the rest of the team via videoconferencing for the duration of the contract and to stay in Valletta for a minimum of 3 weeks prior to the performance to facilitate the smooth operation of the event.
The Agency is looking for an Artistic Director who:
• Is forward looking but with a deep appreciation and understanding of the history, culture and character of Valletta and Malta;
• Has expertise in directing large scale performances and festivals in the Mediterranean region;
• Preferably has experience and knowledge of working on water;
**The Timeline**
• Deadline for submission of the application: 30th April 2021, 14:00 CET
• Announcement of shortlisting for interview: 12th May 2021
• Online Interviews with Selection Committee: 17th – 28th May 2021
• Final selection: 2nd June 2021
The Artistic Director will be required to have a valid VAT number or its equivalent in the applicant’s country of residence in order to enter into a Contract for Service with the Agency.
**Application**
Along with a filled-in application form, please submit:
• Proposed project concept, description, aims and outcomes;
• Proposed list of participating artists (or types of participating artists);
• Proposed budet estimate;
• Portfolio;
• Any Supporting documents.
**What the Agency will provide:**
All the production management, marketing and communication will be handled in-house by the Agency.
The event is set to be created with an indicative budget of Eur 600,000 inclusive of all costs and taxes. Based on previous editions, the costs may be divided as follows:
• 4% for costs related to Tellieqa Telliqun and Regatta;
• 21% for Crowd control, Health and Safety, Insurance and Port Logistics;
• 75% for Artistic Performance.
The final budget will be confirmed in November 2021.
The 75% allocation for the Artistic Performance must include:
• Artistic Director Fee;
• Artist fees;
• Production costs including installation and dismantling;
• Technical equipment including sound, light and generators;
• Rental of any necessary venues including rehearsal spaces;
• Costs related to outreach activities;
• Accomodation and travel for the Artistic Director and any international artists.
Submit your propsal and all requested documents via email with the subject title “Open Call for Artistic Director VPOTS 2022” to opencalls@vca.gov.mt by the 30th April 2021, 14:00 (CET). Late applications will not be considered.
For any relevant queries, please send us an email on opencalls@vca.gov.mt by not later than the 23rd April 2021 , 14:00 CET.
__**Terms and Conditions**__
• All submissions must fulfil all obligations of the application to be considered eligible. Any omissions or missing information will render the proposed artistic idea and related submitted documents ineligible.
• Submissions will be evaluated by an ad hoc Selection Committee set up by the Agency.
• All queries submitted to the Agency in relation to this Call for Artistic Project Ideas will be published onto a FAQ document, which will in turn be made available for all the applicants and general public on www.vca.gov.mt. The answers to these queries form part of this application process and are thus considered part of the terms and conditions for the same.
• Once selected, the Artistic Director will be meeting with the Programming and Production Department of the Agency, to further develop the idea and finalise the content, budgets and production of the project in collaboration with the Agency.
• Subsequently, the Artistic Director will enter into a Contract for Service with the Agency. The selected Artistic Director will receive the agreed fee for their respective services, with a final percentage being paid upon satisfactory completion of the project.
• All marketing and communications material and campaign will be created, managed and funded separately and directly by the Valletta Cultural Agency.
• Any ticketing initiatives will be managed by the Valletta Cultural Agency according to the nature of the proposed project idea. Income resulting from ticketing or any other initiatives will remain with the Agency.
• Any sponsorship or collaboration initiatives will be managed by the Valletta Cultural Agency, according to the nature of the proposal.
• The Agency reserves the right not to select any project ideas should none of the submissions satisfy the set criteria.
• Applicants’ personal details will be retained by the Agency for up to one year after the closure of this Call for Proposals, for the purposes of this call and other similar initiatives.
**Frequently Asked Questions**
1. To what level of detail are you expecting budgetary estimates to be provided? Given VCA’s own experience of staging the 2020 VPOTS, and the indication in the job specification that budgets will be discussed between the Artistic Director and the VCA team before being finalised in November, would I be correct that it is enough to give an indication of the relative financial weighting I would expect to give to each element of my proposal?
The evaluation will be based on the various elements required in the application: the project concept/description/outcomes; the proposed list of artists; the budget estimate and the portfolio of the applicant. Whilst the budget will indeed be further developed with the experienced Production team of the Agency, the budget estimate provided with the application will help the evaluators understand the feasibility of the project as well as the experience of the applicant in the more practical aspects of creating such a large-scale and complex project.
The budget estimate should be limited to the allocation for the Artistic Performance which amounts Eur 450,000 (75% of the overall cost of Eur 600,000) and it should at least indicate how much the applicant is allocating to each category of costs listed which include: Artistic Director Fee; Artist Fees; Production costs; Technical equipment; Rental of venues; Outreach activities; Accommodation and travel.
2. Regarding your call for Artistic Director of Pageant of the Seas 2022 (VCA) could I please request the following clarification. In the covering notes it is stated:
Along with a filled-in application form, please submit:
• Proposed project concept, description, aims and outcomes;
• Proposed list of participating artists (or types of participating artists);
• Proposed budget estimate;
• Portfolio;
• Any Supporting documents.
Please confirm that the list of additional documents listed above are to be sent additionally to the completed application form
Please note that the List of Participating Artists and the Budget Estimates may be included directly in the Application Form if desired or they may be submitted as a separate document as long as all the requested information is provided.
A detailed description of the project concept, description, aims and outcomes; the applicant’s portfolio and any additional supporting documents must be submitted separately along with a filled-in and signed form
3. Could you kindly send a site plan of harbour area pinpointing main areas and stages? Are Isla and Birgu considered as viewing areas of the Valletta Pageant of the Seas? As in can they be included in the proposal?
The image included in the call indicates the general geographic area that is to be used. The positioning of key elements such as stages or control areas will be discussed with the Artistic Director based on the selected proposal.
The target viewing area for the event is Valletta. The proposal does not need to cater for viewers in Isla and Birgu.
4. Could you also clarify the following please: Beginning time and end time of POTS22? (or what has been done in previous editions)? Also time allocation for regatta and telieqa, ie schedule start, duration and finish of both events? Assuming a clear grand harbour for the show, what are the scheduled clearance of the fairway and port?
All of the elements mentioned will be part of the discussion with the selected Artistic Director and representatives of the Agency. As a general indication, based on the 2020 edition of the Valletta Pageant of the Seas which was created for TV, rather than a live audience, the times are as follows:
Beginning time: 18:30
Tellieqa Telliqun (including viewing of positioning and 15 minute race): 18:45 to 19:30
Regatta (including viewing of preparation and 15 minute race): 20:00 to 21:00
End time: 23:00
The scheduled clearance of the fairway and port depends greatly on the performance and its technical requirements. This will be discussed with the relevant authorities once the proposal is selected.
5. What point system and criteria will the foundation be scoring when assessing proposals?….ie what percentage points are allocated and how?
The Evaluators will assess and score proposals based on the following criteria:
• Artistic – 50%
Proposed project concept, aims and outcomes
Detailed description
List of artists
Experiential impact and outreach planned
• Technical – 35%
Proposed budget estimate
Timeframes
Identification of risks and contingency plans
• Directorial experience and portfolio – 15%
6. Can a single proposal be submitted by multiple organisations and individuals?
Nothing in the call precludes organisations and/or multiple individuals from applying as long as the application clearly indicates which person, from the organisation or group, is to be considered the Artistic Director/person responsible for the project.
7. Can the lead artist be an organisation or consortium?
The call does not place any restrictions on the artists being proposed by the Artistic Director.
8. Can a lead artist submit more than 1 proposal?
The call is seeking an Artistic Director with a clear vision of what the event could be. The focus is therefore on the person, not the proposal. The selected Artistic Director and the Agency will then go through a phase of development over the coming months.
9. Can you please provide the exact mapping of the main staging area and the foundations wish list in terms of main spots, as the proposal is missing appendix 1?
Appendix 1 is the image which may be viewed at https://www.vca.gov.mt/en/opportunities/artistic-director-(valletta-pageant-of-the-seas-2022) indicating the area in which the event must take place. Staging and main spots will be discussed with the selected Artistic Director during the development of the project.
10. POTS20 was regatta, tellieqa telliqun and a 40 minute ‘show’. 600K is a healthy budget for that, are proposals expected to follow that structure? ie was 600k POTS20 cost?….should broadcast be costed within the 600k too?
As per the terms of the call 25% of the Eur 600,000 budget is dedicated to the costs of the Tellieqa Telliqun, the Regata, Crowd Control, Health and Safety, Insurance and Port Logistics. The remaining 75% must cover any and all additional costs as specified in the call.
11. From previous experience POTS18 and POTS20 can you guide on the logistical cost of the project ie staging, infrastructure, lights etc…?
Based on the experience of previous editions, it is not possible to provide such details at this stage as it varies greatly depending on the vision of the Artistic Director.
